


Big sister, little brother

by caramelodrama



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, First Dates, Protective Siblings, References to Depression
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-19
Updated: 2019-08-19
Packaged: 2020-09-07 04:34:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20303542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caramelodrama/pseuds/caramelodrama
Summary: Bran has got a date and Sansa helps him get ready for it. Brother and sister talk about love, relationships and letting yourself be vulnerable.





	Big sister, little brother

**Author's Note:**

> This happens a couple months after the ending of my other fanfic "Of all people in the world", but it's a oneshot so you can totaly understand this story without reading the other :)
> 
> Also there is a little extra for Theonsa fans at the end

“Hold my hand **big sister** all the years through.

Hold my hand **little brother** for I will always love and protect you”

Bran was nervous. She could tell by seeing him looking at the mirror and then looking at some of his shirts that were tossed on the bed with a frustrated look on his face. Sansa chuckled. Her little brother that was always so calm, even in the most stressful situations, was now nervous.

He heard her and shot an annoyed look at her. She knocked at his door and entered his room, now that she was caught.

“What do you want, Sansa?” he said in tired tone

“Nothing, just checking on you” she smiled

“Well, I’m ok.” He replied calm

“Do you want some help?” she asked

“No, I’m good.”

He was lying. She knew he wanted help, he just wasn’t telling her. He wanted to prove that he was growing up and, therefore, didn’t need to ask advice from his big sister. She didn’t take it personally, since Bran also didn’t ask Robb nor Jon nor Arya for advice.

“Ok.” She paused and then continued “But in my opinion, I like how the navy blue shirt suits your eyes”

Bran smiled tired.

“Yeah, but I don’t have a jacket that looks good with it…”

“Why don’t you wear a cardigan?”

“I’m gonna look even nerdier” he replied frustrated. “It was a bad idea, maybe I should call it off.”

“What? Bran, no! You were so excited when you asked her out and she said yes!”

Yes, Bran had a date. Sansa still couldn’t believe that her baby little brother was going out with a girl. Not that people hadn’t already told her he seemed to have a crush on the girl he was talking to back at Arya’s farewell barbecue, but asking her out was a huge step. Especially considering it was Bran.

Bran used to be very energetic, eager to explore new things, but his accident changed him. Made him be more cautious and suspicious. After their father died and he stopped going to school, he was diagnosed with depression and life was not as colorful and full of opportunities as it once seemed.

So, if he did took the chance and asked someone out, his feelings should really be sincere.

“Yeah, but maybe she just said yes because she pitied me.” He looked down.

“Don’t say such thing!” Sansa said with a reprimanding yet sweet tone.

“It’s true Sansa! I’m weird and I look nerdy and… I’m stuck in a wheelchair. Why would she want to go out with me?”

“Bran, you’re the sweetest person I know! You’re so intelligent and kind. I can see plenty of reason she would want to go out with you.” Sansa said with a caring tone not understanding why her brother had such a poor opinion of himself

“Well I don’t feel any of these things.” He said frustrated

“Is that what you see? A weird nerdy boy?” Sansa asked calm but with a tone of sadness in her voice

Bran shrugged.

“A weird nerdy boy that will never walk again”

That really hurt Sansa.

“Bran, it doesn’t mean anything, this doesn’t change the incredible person you are.” She moved closer to him and sat on his bed, next to the many shirts he tossed.

“It doesn’t change the fact that I’m a cripple.” He said calm.

“Don’t say that!” Sansa hated when he said the word cripple. She toned down her voice and continued, more kindly “This doesn’t have to define you.”

“But it affects how I relate to other, how others see me.”

“Yeah, now that you’re a little annoying teenager” Sansa teased. Bran threw pillow on her. “You’re so much more than that. You must know that” she said kindly

“I always think that people are with me because they pity me or that… you know people probably think that Meera deserves someone…” he wanted to say “_someone that is not a cripple”_ but he knew Sansa would be upset so he said “better. Someone better” He paused, then continued “And they are right.” He said

“You may think that you’re not good enough, but she agreed to go out with you! Nobody else. It was her choice. What about her, Bran?”

“Meera is a good person. She’s my friend and she’s funny and kind and pretty… you know, she and her brother Jojen are a few true friends I have”

“Things were not easy at school after father was accused, right?”

“Yes.” Bran paused. He wanted to tell his sister about it, even if it made him look bad. “That was the point of having siblings, they will love you even if they know you you’re a looser” He though and continued. “It was strange because after my accident everyone was nice to me and I still had a lot of friends, so I was never so bothered that I couldn’t walk and do the things I used to, but after father was accused…”

Bran took a deep breath and looked at Sansa that looked back at him with nothing but care. He continued

“Some kids at school started ignoring me and others… They were just mean to me calling me names from behind my back or even to my face. They called me cripple. It was so strange because many of them were my friends and… I never thought they would do that to me.

The only people that still treated me the same were Meera, Jojen, Hodor and Osha. Though Hodor and Osha work at the school and Meera is my senior. So in class, Jojen was the only friend I had.

One day Meera came with her lip parted and nobody told me why… I found out that there were some kid in my class that were teasing Jojen because he was still my friend. Meera defended him and one of them punched her by accident.”

Bran paused. He looked down at his hands

“I felt so guilty, Sansa… I didn’t want to be a reason people were treating my friends bad… You know that Meera and Jojen have scholarships to study there, right?”

Sansa shook her head

“Their father is a professor there, so they have a scholarship, but they don’t have as much money as the others. Some people already treat them different because of that and… They can’t get into trouble otherwise they can lose the scholarship. That’s why I asked mom to be homeschooled.”

“Bran…” Sansa said without hiding her sadness

“I know you think it was mom’s idea, but I was the one who asked her. I was the one who was afraid…” Bran looked down

“It’s ok Bran, you did what you thought it was right… To protect your friends”

“Meera was really mad at me at that time… I thought she wouldn’t want to talk to me again. But she, Jojen, Hodor and Osha always texted me and invited me to come over to their houses and watch movies. I never accepted because I was afraid they hated me in secret. That they thought I was a coward and abandoned them. Or they were just doing that because they pitied me.” He paused.

He knew it would be difficult for most people to understand that. Not feeling like you deserve other people’s affections. Not understanding why people would like you, when you can’t find anything you like about yourself. Feeling hopeless about your life. Bran was trying to fight this feelings every day. To get out of his bed and not give up, every day. He was glad he had help. Family and friends. People who love him.

“I was so happy when they accepted coming to Arya’s barbecue…” he smiled “You know… Meera always seemed to know how to make me smile. I don’t know, Sansa, I just like being around her.”

“I think she feels the same about you.” yes she did. Sansa remembered the sweet look Meera gave Bran back at the barbecue.

Bran shook his head

“I know she cares about me as a friend, but-“

“Do you think she would be the kind of person that would accept to go out with you just out of pity?” Sansa asked calm

Bran stood in silence for a while.

“No.” he replied quietly.

“Then, stop doing this to yourself, Bran!”

“It’s hard, Sansa. When it comes to studying and working I know my value, but when it comes to this… Allowing people near me and showing feelings… It’s hard.” he said frustrated

“I know Bran.” Sansa reached for his hand and squeezed it. He squeezed hers back.

“I don’t know what to do. I’m scared I’m exposing myself too much only to end up getting humiliated and hurt.”

“Bran…”

“You never know if the person you like, likes you back. All you really have are hints. And even so, you can read these hints all wrong…” he looked at his sister

“It’s a chance you have to take. It can go wrong, but it can go so right!”

“Yeah, but then, you don’t know if this person will eventually get tired of you once she knows you’re a difficult person. When she knows you’re annoying and you have bad days and- You have no guarantees she’s gonna want to stick around you or she will choose to disappear from your life.”

“Bran, everyone has their good days and bad days. When we love someone we still love then even on their bad days, even when there are not so lovable” She smiled and paused “Also, if someone decides not to like you, not to accept your feelings or to walk away from you, they are the ones loosing. They are loosing the love and affection you could give them. You never loose for loving people, they are the ones who loose for not accepting your love.”

“But Sansa, what will you have left? You can open your heart to someone and this person can just decide to walk away.”

“You will have the time together, the memories, what you learned and what you take from this experience…” Sansa said kindly.

“What if the memories are all bad?” Bran asked

“You will know what not to do the next time” she replied. She knew that. Better than anyone.

“What if there is no next time? What if I never like someone like this again?”

Sansa smiled. Bran and her were so alike. That was a thought that crossed her mind many times when she ended her first relationship, that she would never find love again, that nobody would like her because she had so many flaws. And also that she would never let open her heart to anyone else again. She didn’t want to get hurt like this again.

That didn’t happen, she did found love again.

“Bran, of course you will find someone you will like again.” She paused “There are so many people, so many opportunities, you never know. Sometimes you find it in the most unexpected ways” like she found Theon. That made her smile.

Bran guessed what crossed his sister’s mind and rolled his eyes. She punched him lightly with the pillow he threw at her.

“Not sure I want to bet on this.” Bran said.

“But I think that’s how relationships work...” she said reflecting on her words. After all, Sansa was also learning what true love and a real relationship meant.

“That’s just awful!” he said frustrated

“Bran, it’s not. Feelings and people are constantly changing. I think everything in life is changing.” Sansa couldn’t believe her own words. But that reflected what she herself had bene through.

“That’s a terrifying thought.” He said serious.

Bran used to be spontaneous, he felt like he lost this part of him. Changes now scared him. He had enough of changes, with his accident, with his father dying, Robb, Jon, Sansa and Arya leaving Winterfell. He just wanted some stability.

“Yeah, right?” Sansa said. She understood his feelings. They stayed in silence for a while.

“But I think it would be also terrifying to think that we can never change.” Bran said out of the blue. Yes, changes are scary, but not changing forever is also scary. They stayed in silence for a while until Sansa spoke.

“Bran, you know… You used to be so little. I would tuck you in bed and put blankets on you when you fell asleep. When you held my hand your hand was so small and chubby.”

“Now I think I’m almost as big as you.” he laughed “Can’t call you big sister anymore”

“I will always be you big sister” she replied faking she was offended.

“I remember you doing that. Tucking me up in bed and wanting to read to me stories that had love and kissing”

“You hated them!” she laughed

“I still do.” He laughed as well

Yes, changes were hard for him. But he realized that he was not alone. Sansa also felt these changes. She stood by his bedside when he was in the hospital after the accident, she cried when their father died, she was alone in uni… So did his mother, Robb, Arya, Jon, Rickon and Theon.

Things changed not only for him, but for everyone. And not only on the outside, growing up in height, but mostly inside. They all had to be more mature and to face things in life in a more realistic way. They didn’t have their father protecting them anymore. They went through bad things, but they didn’t lose. They didn’t give up. They became stronger. They were together.

Besides, if for him it was weird to have his sister date Theon, for Sansa it would also be weird to see Bran go date. After all, she said many times he was her _baby_. He wanted to laugh.

“But, you know I always liked the books you brought when you came home from uni.”

“Thanks” she smiled “Good thing is you can go get your own books now.” She was happy that Bran felt much better to go out Winterfell now.

“I know. But I still want you to choose some for me”

Sansa smiled

“I will, always.”

“Sansa, I believe I changed.”

“You did, Bran.” She smiled at his with nothing but affection

“You changed too.”

“For good or for bad?” she teased

“For good.” He paused “Except for dating Theon” he teased

“Theon changed as well.” She said laughing.

“I know.” he paused “Because I saw that he changed I also thought that I could change. Does that sound weird?”

“No” she smiled

“I thought, maybe I can try to be more open and try to reach out for my friends. That’s why I decided to call them and invite them over for the barbecue.” Bran said

“And you did that. I’m proud of you.”

“I still think I won’t go to this date, though.” He deviated his look.

“Of course you’re going to go, Brandon Stark.” She paused “You’re going to wear the navy shirt and I have the perfect jacket for you.”

Sansa left his room and Bran stood looking at where his sister was siting.

Could he also made this change? Could he have the courage to let his heart open? To allow himself to love and to be loved in return? Accept the affection people showed him and return it, unafraid of what others might think of him?

Sansa pulled him out of these thoughts when she returned holding a dark grey varsity jacket

“It’s Theon’s! Don’t make that face.” she said as Bran rolled his eyes at her “I think it will suit you well! You’ve grown so much that I think you’re almost about the same size”

Bran made a bored face but still tried it on and… It looked great! Theon was probably a head and a half taller than Bran and he was more athletic as well. Bran was skinnier since he was growing up too much and too fast, so the jacket that was supposed to be more thight was looser on him, it became an oversized jacket, but it fit the whole outfit really well.

“It looks really good.” She smiled

“Yeah, I suppose.”

“You look so cool! And don’t even start, because I was the one who chose the jacket for him! And you know I have a good taste for clothes.”

Bran laughed.

“Thanks, Sansa!”

“I should dress you all the time” she laughed. Bran did too.

“I mean, thank you. For _everything_.”

“I love you, little brother.” She smiled and hugged him.

“I love you too, big sister.” He hugged her back and smiled. His sweet smile that once came so quickly, now was quite rare, but when it came it was sincere.

“Now go get your date.” She said.

-

“So… I heard you let Bran borrow my favorite jacket” Theon teased while he sat next to her feet at the sofa. The house was strangely quiet, so Sansa was reading in the living room wrapped up in a blanket and her legs bent. When he sat next to her she deviated her eyes from the book to his.

“He needed it more than you for today” she replied smiling

“But it was my favorite jacket…” he complained taking a piece of her blanket and getting closer to her

“Yeah? Why is that?” she teased.

“It’s warm and it fits with everything” he replied looking away

“Good.” She smiled and returned to her book.

He leaned his head on her bent knees and hugged her tucked legs

“And you chose it for me” he said. His voice was muffed in the blanket. He then looked back at her in the eye “Was that what you wanted to hear?” he teased smiling. She looked at him as well and didn’t say anything, just smiled playfully and nodded. He rolled his eyes and crawled next to her, putting his head on her shoulder “What are you reading?”


End file.
